| Generations ago, thyroid enlargement,
or goiter, was common in America due to a lack of iodine in the diet. Today, however,
iodine deficiency is not a problem in the typical American diet; the most common cause of
hypothyroidism is Hashimoto's disease, a disorder of the body's autoimmune system. Because
hypothyroidism slows down the way the body burns calories, many overweight women wishfully
try to blame their weight gains on a sluggish thyroid. But it's not to blame. "Obesity and major
weight gains are rarely related to an under-active thyroid," says Dr. Tulloch.
"Most thyroid-related weight gains amount to only a few pounds, and that's due mostly
to water retention." While
doctors can't usually make an under-active thyroid active again, they can easily treat and
control it. "All we have to do is restore the right balance of thyroid hormone in the
system by replacing what isn't being produced," says Martin I. Surks, M.D., head of
the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Montefiore Medical Center in New York
City. Women with sluggish thyroids take little tablets containing a synthetic version of
the hormone thyroxine. The drawback: They must take them every day for the rest of their
lives. Click here for more information on Thyroid and Weight Loss or Weight Loss
without Stimulants
 | The Overactive Thyroid
|
- Now imagine the thyroid acting in reverse,
pumping out too much hormone. These excess hormones push the body's metabolism into
overdrive, producing a unique combination of hyper-symptoms that includes rapid heartbeat,
weight loss, weakness, nervousness, irritability and tremors. Not surprisingly, this
is called hyperthyroidism. Its most common cause is Graves' disease, the autoimmune
disorder that struck both former President George Bush and Barbara Bush. The former first
lady, you may remember, was bothered by rapid weight loss, bulging eyeballs and vision
problems--classic Graves' symptoms. Her husband became aware of his Graves' disease after
a scare from an irregular heartbeat.
When treating an overactive thyroid, physicians have
several options. The simplest and most prescribed is to use radioactive iodine to reduce
the number of overproductive thyroid cells. Doctors can also prescribe drugs that block
the production of thyroid hormone or that block the effects of the hormone on the body.
And as a last resort, doctors may surgically remove all or part of an overactive thyroid.
But since surgery and radioactive iodine can cause women to later develop hypothyroidism,
a lifetime of thyroxine tablets is often necessary.
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- Who's at Risk
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- Several key factors can put a woman at risk
for developing thyroid disorders. The most important is just being a woman. "Women
are about five times more likely than men to develop problems with their thyroids,"
says Dr. Surks. "Many thyroid disorders also manifest themselves during or following
pregnancy or after menopause." Graves' disease and other causes of overactive thyroid
are most common in the 20- to 40-year-old age group, but they can occur in older people,
too. By age 50, at least one woman in ten has signs of an under
-active thyroid. And 17
percent of women over 60 suffer from some form of hypothyroidism.
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